American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 125 The Construction of the Wooden Wall
(This chapter contains multiple images, each representing the structure of a different log cabin. Please only refer to the structure shown in the images, and do not substitute the actual style.)
The next morning, the sound of an ATV engine could be heard again in the distance.

This time, it was Hank, Patton, and Cody, with George and Stan arriving as promised.

Thus, the Weissman construction team, composed of six tough guys, was formed!

Instead of rushing to start work, they conducted a crucial pre-work inspection.

"Kid, come over here and take a look."

Old George beckoned to Lin Yu'an and took out a pistol-shaped instrument with two metal probes at the front from his toolbox.

"This is a wood moisture tester. Before building a house, we need to make sure that our wood is up to standard."

He walked to a pre-processed, flat log used as part of a wall and forcefully inserted two probes into the cross-section of the wood. The instrument's LCD screen immediately displayed a number.

"22.4%."

Old George read out the readings, and then tested them several more times at the other end and in the middle of the wood, with the readings fluctuating between 22% and 24%.

David asked curiously, "What does this number mean? Does it mean we can use this wood now?"

Old George patted the huge log with satisfaction and said with a smile, "The sun was strong enough this summer, and you flattened them all, which made the ventilation better."

"Once the moisture content drops from over 50% when the crops are freshly cut to below 25%, the most troublesome initial shrinkage period has passed, and it's time to start covering them!"

He turned to David and explained, “We can’t wait for it to dry completely; that would take years. In its current state, we can build it while it continues to dry slowly and naturally.”

"We can handle the remaining settlement by leaving enough leeway in the doors, windows, and roof bolts, which is a common practice in modern log cabin construction."

"Before hoisting any log, we must first prepare all the bones."

Old George announced the first task: "Lin, you and Cody will be in charge of operating the band saw. Your task is to process all the main beams and secondary beams we need from the logs in the next three days!"

Over the next three days, amidst the roar of the band saw, Lin Yu'an and mechanic Cody formed a perfect team.

Lin Yu'an was in charge of the main operation, and with his accurate judgment, he determined the cutting position and thickness of each cut.

Cody, on the other hand, used his mechanical knowledge to continuously adjust, lubricate, and replace the saw blades for this high-intensity machine, ensuring it was always in optimal condition.

Stan, Hank, and Patton used XCMG loaders to transport huge round logs to the band saw, and then moved the cut, heavy square beams and secondary beams to the other side, separating them with wooden blocks and stacking them neatly.

The process was filled with sweat and sawdust, with six men working more than ten hours a day under the midnight sun.

"Lin, go down another half an inch!"

Cody, holding a log that was about to be cut, shouted at Lin Yu'an, who was adjusting the saw head.

Lin Yu'an nodded, turned the dial, and precisely lowered the height of the saw blade.

"All right!"

He started the saw blade, and with a long "hum," the saw head slowly moved forward, and golden wood chips poured down like a waterfall.

"Hey! Patton! Don't slack off! Ready for the next one?"

Stan was not far away, directing the hunter Patton to operate the loader and hoist another log into the waiting area.

After three days of hard work, they finally finished processing all the timber needed to build the platform, including more than a dozen huge main beams and hundreds of secondary beams.

Next to the campsite, a new "timber mountain" made of standardized building materials appeared.

"Listen up, everyone!" Old George called a brief pre-battle meeting.

"Lifting the main beam, especially that 12-meter-long behemoth, is one of the most dangerous parts of the entire project."

"It's heavy and very unstable! I need everyone to be 100% focused and follow orders completely. Understand?"

"Understood!" everyone responded in unison.

Lin Yu'an operated the XCMG loader, using the wide lifting straps to steadily lift the longest 12-meter main beam.

The massive main beam moved towards its throne inch by inch at an extremely slow pace.

When the main beam was still a few centimeters away from the steel support, Hank and Cody immediately used a crowbar to wedge it in place.

"Release them!" Old George commanded.

Lin Yu'an slowly lowered the robotic arm.

"Clang-"

Finally, with a dull thud of metal striking wood, the first main beam landed steadily on the two "steel components"!
"Oh yeah!!!"

The tough guys erupted in a triumphant roar! David, behind the camera, also excitedly pumped his fist.

This scene is full of the heroic spirit of North American tough guys and the unparalleled charm of teamwork!

It took them another day and a half to hoist and connect all the main beams on the perimeter and center line into place, forming a huge hollow frame.

After the main beam frame was completed, they did not immediately lay the secondary beams.

“Now it’s time to install all the drain pipes,” old George said.

The next two days were dedicated to the meticulous work of pipeline pre-laying and insulation.

Lin Yu'an took out his design drawings and, together with Cody, began to lay various pipes between the wooden grid.

They installed the main sewage pipe, red and blue PEX water supply pipes, and covered all the pipes with thick insulation sleeves.

Old George, Stan, Hank, and Patton were responsible for filling the gaps between all the beams with bundles of rock wool insulation, each 30 centimeters thick, tightly.

Only after completing all of this did they begin installing the secondary beams.

Old George and Stan were responsible for fixing the U-shaped support beam brackets to the inside of the main beam at 40-centimeter intervals using impact screwdrivers.

Lin Yu-an, Cody, and two others were responsible for precisely placing the processed secondary beams one by one into the hangers and securing them with structural screws.

The framework of the entire platform is becoming fuller and more solid at a speed visible to the naked eye!
Soon all six men knelt on the beams and began laying the heavy tenon-and-mortise plywood.

Lin Yu'an and Cody operated a professional nail gun connected to an air compressor.

"Da! Da! Da! Da!..."

Accompanied by the rhythmic, powerful sound of nails being driven in, four other people were responsible for moving, aligning, and hammering the plywood.

After two more long working days of continuous daylight, when the last nail was driven in, a solid, flat, and completely elevated "L"-shaped platform was completed!
From the start of processing the first main beam to the final formation of the platform, the entire process took more than a week.

Standing on the platform they had built themselves, everyone was exhausted, but their faces were filled with a great sense of accomplishment!

Old George's voice echoed across the empty construction site: "Guys, we've cracked the first tough nut, but there are still several more to crack."

"Before laying any of the timbers, we have two things to prepare. First, waterproof the platform. Second, protect the base timber from rot."

Everyone immediately sprang into action, with pilot Hank and mechanic Cody taking charge of the more delicate tasks.

They unrolled a huge, black, carpet-like waterproof sheet and cut it open with a sharp utility knife.

Then, under old George's guidance, a bucket of thick, pungent-smelling asphalt adhesive was evenly spread on the outer edge of the foundation platform using a scraper.

Next, they carefully laid the waterproof membrane on top and repeatedly rolled it with rubber rollers to ensure that there were no air bubbles between the membrane and the plywood, forming a "waterproof barrier" about 40 centimeters wide.

Meanwhile, Stan and the hunter Barton, two tough guys, were responsible for handling the heavy "base planks".

They hoisted the logs, which had been flattened at both ends, onto the saddle horse frame, and then, using a large wool brush dipped in another bucket of asphalt preservative paint, began to carefully apply it.

They applied the paint with utmost care, ensuring that every inch of the wood grain was thoroughly coated and imbued with it.

Lin Yu'an and Old George were working together on the most crucial "laying out" task.

They didn't draw lines directly on the waterproof membrane because that would be easily worn away.

Old George took out the ink line, and after the ink line was soaked in ink, he stood at one end of the platform, while Lin Yu'an walked to the other end. The two of them pulled the line straight, close to the inner edge of the waterproof membrane.

"Alright! Release them!" Old George commanded.

Lin Yu'an flicked his finger lightly.

With a crisp "snap!", a straight, jet-black line was instantly imprinted on the waterproof membrane.

This line is the lifeline to ensure that the first layer of walls is absolutely square.

Half a day later, all the preparations were completed, and the hoisting work could begin.

Lin Yu'an started the XCMG XC760K loader and steadily lifted the first prepared 12-meter-long base timber.

At both ends of the platform, George and Stan were responsible for guidance and positioning.

"Move half an inch to the left!...Okay! Stop!...Just a tiny bit forward...just a tiny bit!"

Hank, Barton, and Cody, positioned in the middle of the log, used crowbars and their hands to assist in preventing any unnecessary swaying of the massive piece of wood.

Only when the inner edge of the massive log perfectly aligned with the jet-black line, thanks to the combined efforts of the six people, did Lin Yu'an slowly put it down.

With a muffled thud, the entire platform seemed to tremble slightly.

The first foundation log, and the home is settled!
The team's morale soared when the first and longest base piece was perfectly secured.

"Alright! The first log has been placed!"

Old George shouted, “Guys, don’t stop! Lay all the baseboards to this standard!”

Over the next half day, they used the same method to hoist and fix all the base wood that was in direct contact with the platform into place, forming a complete "L"-shaped bottom outline.

"Lin, the corner timber on the second floor!" Old George commanded.

Lin Yu'an operates an XCMG loader to lift a pre-processed log for the wall.

But before he could put it in place, he did a delicate job—creating a saddle-shaped notch.

He placed the logs steadily on the saddle horse support, and then he took out the slotting tool, which looked like a giant compass, and set its spacing to the length of the radius of the bottom support wood.

He first used a grooving tool to precisely draw a perfect semicircle at the bottom of the log's end, and then started his Steele chainsaw.

Using a method akin to carving, the tip of a chainsaw is used to carefully cut out the approximate outline of the notch along the drawn lines.

Next, he switched to a curved chisel specifically for woodworking and a mallet, and began to do manual finishing.

"Dang! Dang! Dang!"

With a crisp tapping sound, pieces of curved wood chips were chiseled off, and under his skillful hands, the originally rough cut gradually became an extremely smooth and rounded perfect notch.

When he hoisted the prepared corner piece to the corner of the base piece, it fit perfectly as expected!
With a soft "click," the saddle-shaped notch perfectly rested on the vertical baseboard below, forming a sturdy and aesthetically pleasing interlocking structure.

"Pretty!"

Seeing the perfect joint, old George couldn't help but shout in admiration: "Beautiful! Kid, your work is just like that of a lumberjack with years of experience!"

"Alright! The first corner is up! Barton, Cody! Hoist the second layer of timber over there! Hank, put on the sealing strip!"

Hunter Barton immediately jumped onto the loader and, under Lin Yu'an's guidance, was able to perform some simple hoisting operations.

He lifted a twelve-meter-long log and slowly moved it toward the wall.

On the base wood below, Hank and Cody had already laid two parallel professional log sealing strips along the marked lines.

"A little more to the left! Aim right!" Stan shouted from the other end.

"boom!"

With a dull thud, the logs of the second-floor wall landed steadily on the base wood and pressed down on the soft sealing strip!
Next, they began laying the logs for the second layer of walls.

Before laying down each piece of wood, Hank and Cody would first lay two parallel professional log sealing strips on the lower layer of logs.

After the second layer of logs was placed, David raised a crucial question: "George, I've always had a question. You say wood shrinks, so after the house is built, the walls will be lower, won't there be gaps everywhere?"

Old George chuckled and pointed to a massive screw they were installing: "Good question, kid! The secret lies in this thing, the top screw system."

He picked up a screw that hadn't been installed yet and showed David the special construction on its bottom.

"See that? There's a special washer here with a powerful spring."

"We will use it to string together all the logs of the walls from top to bottom."

"In the next few years, as the wood shrinks due to drying, the height of the walls may be reduced by more than ten centimeters."

"At this point, the pressure of these springs will automatically and continuously press the nuts above down, ensuring that the entire wall is always in a compacted state from top to bottom and will never have gaps."

“All we need to do each year is check and tighten these nuts properly, and that completes all the settlement maintenance.”

This ingenious mechanical structure made David realize something, and he was once again impressed by the professional construction techniques.

"Alright! Stop chatting!"

Old George's urgent voice rang out: "Lin! Cody! Drill! Lock these two layers shut!"

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(Thank you all shareholders for making me the champion in daily and monthly votes again yesterday! I have nothing to say but praise you guys for being amazing!)

(End of this chapter)